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The Ball-and-field Test (score 2 Inferior Plan)

PROCEDURE. Draw a circle about two and one half inches in diameter,
leaving a small gap in the side next the child. Say: "_Let us suppose
that your baseball has been lost in this round field. You have no idea
what part of the field it is in. You don't know what direction it came
from, how it got there, or with what force it came. All you know is
that the ball is lost somewhere in the field. Now, take this pencil and
mark out a path to show me how you would hunt for the ball so as to be
sure not to miss it. Begin at the gate and show me what path you would
take._"

Give the instructions always as worded above. Avoid using an expression
like, "_Show me how you would walk around in the field_"; the word
_around_ might suggest a circular path.

Sometimes the child merely points or tells how he would go. It is then
necessary to say: "_No; you must mark out your path with the pencil so I
can see it plainly._" Other children trace a path only a little way and
stop, saying: "Here it is." We then say: "_But suppose you have not
found it yet. Which direction would you go next?_" In this way the child
must be kept tracing a path until it is evident whether any plan governs
his procedure.

SCORING. The performances secured with this test are conveniently
classified into four groups, representing progressively higher types.
The first two types represent failures; the third is satisfactory at
year VIII, the fourth at year XII. They may be described as follows:--

_Type a_ (failure). The child fails to comprehend the
instructions and either does nothing at all or else, perhaps,
takes the pencil and makes a few random strokes which could not
be said to constitute a search.

_Type b_ (also failure). The child comprehends the instructions
and carries out a search, but without any definite plan. Absence
of plan is evidenced by the crossing and re-crossing of paths,
or by "breaks." A break means that the pencil is lifted up and
set down in another part of the field. Sometimes only two or
three fragments of paths are drawn, but more usually the field
is pretty well filled up with random meanderings which cross
each other again and again. Other illustrations of type _b_ are:
A single straight or curved line going direct to the ball, short
haphazard dashes or curves, bare suggestion of a fan or spiral.

_Type c_ (satisfactory at year VIII). A successful performance
at year VIII is characterized by the presence of a plan, but one
ill-adapted to the purpose. That some forethought is exercised
is evidenced, (1) by fewer crossings, (2) by a tendency either
to make the lines more or less parallel or else to give them
some kind of symmetry, and (3) by fewer breaks. The
possibilities of type _c_ are almost unlimited, and one is
continually meeting new forms. We have distinguished more than
twenty of these, the most common of which may be described as
follows:--

1. Very rough or zigzag circles or similarly imperfect spirals.
2. Segments of curves joined in a more or less symmetrical fashion.
3. Lines going back and forth across the field, joined at the ends
and not intended to be parallel.
4. The "wheel plan," showing lines radiating from near the center
of the field toward the circumference.
5. The "fan plan," showing a number of lines radiating (usually)
from the gate and spreading out over the field.
6. "Fan ellipses" or "fan spirals" radiating from the gate like the
lines just described.
7. The "leaf plan," "rib plan," or "tree plan," with lines branching
off from a trunk line like ribs, veins of a leaf, or branches of
a tree.
8. Parallel lines which cross at right angles and mark off the field
like a checkerboard.
9. Paths making one or more fairly symmetrical geometrical figures,
like a square, a diamond, a star, a hexagon, etc.
10. A combination of two or more of the above plans.

_Type d_ (satisfactory at year XII). Performances of this type
meet perfectly, or almost perfectly, the logical requirements of
the problem. The paths are almost or quite parallel, and there
are no intersections or breaks. The possibilities of type _d_
are fewer and embrace chiefly the following:--

1. A spiral, perfect or almost perfect, and beginning either at
the gate or at the center of the field. 2. Concentric circles.
3. Transverse lines, parallel or almost so, and joined at the
ends.

Up to about 4 years most children failed entirely to comprehend the
task. By the age of 6 years the task is usually understood, but the
search is conducted without plan. Type _c_ is not attained by two
thirds before the mental level of 8 years, and score 3 ordinarily not
until 11 or 12 years.

Grading presents some difficulties because of occasional border-line
performances which have a value almost midway between the types _b_ and
_c_ or between _c_ and _d_. Frequent reference to the scoring card will
enable the examiner, after a little experience, to score nearly all the
doubtful performances satisfactorily.

REMARKS. The ball-and-field problem may be called a test of practical
judgment. Unlike a majority of the other tests, it gives the subject a
chance to show how well he can meet the demands of a real, rather
than an imagined, situation. Tests like this, involving practical
adjustments, are valuable in rounding out the scale, which, as left by
Binet, placed rather excessive emphasis on abstract reasoning and the
comprehension of language. The test requires little time and always
arouses the child's interest.

Our analysis of the responses of nearly 1500 subjects shows that
improvement with increasing mental age is steady and fairly rapid.
Occasionally, however, one meets a high-grade performance with children
of 6 or 7 years, and a low-grade performance with adults of average
intelligence. Like all the other tests of the scale, it is unreliable
when used alone.